Symposium 14 - Impact of Peer Victimization in Youth and Directions for Intervention: A New Look At An Old Problem

Friday, November 17, 2023

10:30 AM – 12:00 PM PST

Location: Cowlitz (502), Level 5

CE: 1.5

Keywords: Adolescents, Social Relationships, Anxiety
Level of Familiarity: Basic to Moderate
Recommended Readings: La Greca, A.M., & Harrison, H. W. (2005). Adolescent peer relations, Friendships, and romantic relationships: Do they predict social anxiety and depression? Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 34, 49-61.,

Wolke, D. & Lereya, S.T. (2015). Long-term effects of bullying. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 100, 879-885.

Anderson, M. (2018). A majority of teens have experienced some form of cyberbullying. Pew Research Center. Available at: https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2018/09/PI_2018.09.27_teens-and-cyberbullying_FINAL.pdf

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2019). Bullying. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/youthviolence/bullyingresearch/fastfact.html

National Center for Education Statistics. (2022). Bullying at school and electronic bullying. Condition of Education. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. Available at: https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/a10/bullying-electronic-bullying

Chair(s)

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Annette La Greca, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Pediatrics
University of Miami
Coral Gables, Florida

Discussant(s)

Jonathan Comer, Ph.D. (he/him/his)

Professor
Florida International University
Miami, Florida

Presenter(s)

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Evan Burdette, M.S. (he/him/his)

Graduate Student
Department of Psychology, University of Miami
Coral Gables, Florida
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Chloe Hudson, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

Postdoctoral Fellow
McLean Hospital/Harvard Medical School
Belmont, Massachusetts
Corinne Carlton, M.S. (she/her/hers)

Graduate Student
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, Virginia
John Cooley, Ph.D. (he/him/his)

Assistant Professor
Department of Psychological Sciences, Texas Tech University
Lubbock, Texas

In December 2021, the US Surgeon General issued a public advisory to call attention to an urgent public health issue; namely that mental health challenges, such as anxiety and depression, were now the leading cause of disability and poor life outcomes for youth.
This symposium focuses on peer victimization – one critical factor contributing to anxiety and depression in youth. Peer victimization (PV) – or being the target of peer aggression/bullying – is a significant stressor that contributes to the development and maintenance of anxiety and depression in youth (La Greca & Harrison, 2005), as well as to sleep difficulties, self-harm, and school dropout (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019; Wolke & Lereya, 2015). National surveys (e.g., Anderson, 2018) reveal that 50% or more of U.S. teens have been bullied or harassed online, especially girls; and data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2019) show that one in five high school students reported experiencing PV on school property in the prior year. Moreover, Finally, a distinguished clinical researcher with extensive experience in intervention will discuss the implications of the studies for expanding the quality, scope, and accessibility of interventions for youth who are affected by PV.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the session, the learner will be able to:

Identify two or more risk factors contributing to the impact of peer victimization on youth, which could be considered in designing interventions.
Describe how social cognition and measurement affect the relationship between peer victimization and depressive symptoms.
Identify two or more ways that interventions for peer victimized youth can be improved.
Describe how sleep problems and repetitive negative thinking perpetuate the impact of peer victimization on adolescent depression and anxiety.
Describe how modular cognitive behavioral therapy can be implemented to address the mental health needs of bullied children and adolescents.